BALTIMORE SUN: That Mr. Burns had to reacquaint himself with the First Amendment ... suggests he has neither the temperament nor the basic understanding of government and law to continue in office. The fact that the use of his office letterhead for the purpose may have violated General Assembly ethics rules only underscores the point....
AN EMBARRASSMENT TO MARYLAND DEMOCRATS - If you haven't heard about the recent controversy surrounding Maryland lawmaker Emmett Burns Jr, you're missing out on one of the most idiotic stories of the year. Hat tip:Todd Eberly of the Free Stater blog.
Delegate Burns, a Baltimore area Democrat, represents District 10 in the State House. He is also apparently against both free speech and marriage equality. Burns is now the subject of a national, viral news story after he tried to get the Baltimore Ravens to silence one of their players (linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo) for publicly endorsing marriage equality. See a synopsis of the story below.
Baltimore Ravens Linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo is Pro-LGBT rights (source: Instagram)
Here's a brief review of the controversy involving Maryland Delegate Emmett Burns Jr, the Baltimore Ravens, and linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo:
Local news outlets are reporting that the labor union representing Anne Arundel County police is launching a radio campaign against disgraced County Executive John Leopold. The Republican County leader is currently under investigation after allegations emerged that he used County Police to spy on his political enemies, change his urinary catheters and aid in his sexual conquests - Read the Indictment Online.
Numerous groups have called on GOP Exec. John Leopold to resign, along with Police Chief James Teare. The union representing Anne Arundel's cops (IBPO) is now airing radio ads on the matter. Hometown Annapolis today reported:
The union that represents most of the county’s sergeants and lieutenants began running radio ads today in support of Anne Arundel County Deputy Police Chief Emerson Davis.
Davis, the department’s second-in-command, testified before the County Council last week on allegations related to the indictment of County Executive John R. Leopold.
Meghan Walsh, a spokeswoman for the Washington, D.C., office of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, or IBPO, said the ads will run several times a day for several days on three Baltimore-based radio stations: WPOC 93.1 FM, WQSR 102.7 FM and WCAO 600 AM....
Leopold was indicted last month on five counts of misappropriation and misconduct. The indictment alleged he used the police officers assigned to his security detail for personal and political reasons.
The indictment also alleges that police officers went to Police Chief James Teare Sr. with complaints, but Teare took “no effective action.” Teare has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
The union that represents high-ranking police officers in Anne Arundel County has dropped the name of the force's second-in-command from a radio ad that criticizes the county's executive and chief of police.
The International Brotherhood of Police Officers, which represents Anne Arundel's police lieutenants and sergeants, originally planned to run an ad that promoted Deputy Police Chief Lt. Col. Emerson C. Davis as having taken a "brave stand" by testifying in front of the County Council about alleged improprieties by his superiors.
The rewritten one-minute radio spot now calls for County Executive John Leopold and Police Chief Col. James E. Teare Sr. to vacate office until charges against Leopold are resolved, according to a statement Thursday from the union.
Maryland Juice has obtained copies of both radio ads, which we replay below. Note, we added some visuals to the raw audio tapes, using screencaps of the WILD indictment charges against John Leopold.
